12 Days of Yule; Day 5 - Darkness

I have been posting Blog Prompts and Journaling suggestions at my other blog, Spirit Self Awareness Journaling.  They have been based on the 12 Days of Yule prayers at Pagan/Wiccan About.com by Patti Wigington, and I have prepared these prompts in advance with no way of knowing what the day would hold on the day the blog was scheduled to be published.

The prompt and prayer from the blog that was published today was this;


December 14, 2012 - Day 5

Day 5 ; A Prayer For The Beginning of Winter
In early winter, we can see the skies becoming overcast, and smell fresh snow in the air. Take a few minutes to think about the fact that even if the skies are cold and dark, it's only temporary.


"See the gray skies overhead, preparing the way
for the darkness soon to come.
See the gray skies overhead, preparing the way,
for the world to go cold and lifeless.
See the gray skies overhead, preparing the way
for the longest night of the year.
See the gray skies overhead, preparing the way
for the sun to one day return,
bringing with it light."

By Patti Wigington; http://paganwiccan.about.com

My Journaling / Blogging suggestion;

Take time to think about how everything comes in cycles. The winter months eventually give way to spring... things won't always be dark and gloomy. What were some times in your life you remember seeming the darkest? They didn't last forever. Even if pain from those dark times still lingers, you have had moments of joy and light again. Thank the Earth for these cycles for they help us grow and make us stronger. I recently asked a group of friends, "If you could erase the memory of the darkest time in your life, would you?" The answer was a resounding NO, because those memories, though painful, have shaped us into who we are today. So even if the weather isn't pleasant, be thankful for it. It makes us more appreciative of the sun when it does return. 

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I had planned on writing about some of my own personal dark days.  Something perhaps about many years ago, when I was a rape victim, or a drug addict.  I have recovered from those days, though their memory can still cast a dark shadow on me at times.  I was going to write about how I had overcome those "dark days" and found myself to now be a much stronger and more positive person.

But today, there is a present darkness that has cast it's shadow across our country - and across the whole world.  I think it effects all of us as humans very deeply and profoundly.  I am refering to the tragic massacre at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Connecticut.  A darkness has cast a cloud on all of us today as 28 people were killed by the gunfire of a madman, 20 of those beautiful souls being just children, between the ages of 5 and 10.

My original plan for blogging was to talk about how many of our dark times are "lessons" we need to learn, which make us stronger.  Yet when we experience something senseless, so meaningless, so tragic, we can't really think of it in the same way as a "lesson" which needed to be learned.  My own personal struggles with drug addiction in my early 20's (12 years clean, by the way!!) was one of those things that can be looked back on as a lesson.  My spirit needed to learn self-love, self-control, and to not seek "temporary fixes".  Today, the darkness and pain felt everywhere is a different kind of pain.  Because I don't think that God and Goddess send us lessons in the form of senseless violence and the loss of lives in tragic meaningless ways.  The sad truth is, bad things happen on this planet.  They happen every day.  While we don't need to look at this as a "message" from the Gods, or a "lesson" sent by the universe to our people.... we DO need to find a way to grow from this experience.  Let it change you, let it teach you.  Not because it's a lesson to be learned, but because if you don't let it change you, THEN it becomes even more senseless and pointless than it already is.  Hug your family close.  Show kindness to strangers.  Give, even when you have little or nothing to give.  Pray more often, lift up all of mankind in your prayers.  Greive for the children, and the adults who lost their lives, greive for the people who are so lost and disconnected from the Light of Spirit that they act in any way other than Divine Love.  The Sun WILL return.  It's in US... the solar power to light up the world again.  My heart is breaking for this tradgedy, and I pray for hope, I pray for peace, I pray for Light.  May The Great Wheel's turning carry us with it, forward into a place of Light, where we can learn the true meaning of Brotherhood and Love.....

Blessed Be...

Calling on The Fates or Norns to aid in Divination

Honoring the Fates

Connecting with The Fates, also known as the Moerae, can be very helpful when you are doing any type of divination or dream work, or just wanting a clearer glimpse at your life to help you make better choices.  Since The Fates weave each person's "Life Thread", they can help you look into your life through dreams, meditation, or divination.
You can also look at any Three Card tarot reading in terms of the Three Sisters known as the Fates or The Norns... Past, Present, and Future.  Before drawing your three tarot cards, call upon each sister by name... Clotho (Past), Lachesis (Present), and Atropos (Future) and see what each card, or each sister, reveals to you.  If you wish, you can call upon the Nordic Norns for your tarot reading in a similar fashion;   They are Urd (The Past), Verthandi or Verdandi (the Present), and Skuld (the Future). 

The Dark of The Moon is a good time for Divination and Dream work.  The night before the New Moon, it is the night of No moon... the darkest night of the cycle.  In this time we experience a long period of darkness, and the night is not even illuminated by the moon... we can delve deep into the psyche and the inner, secret realms of the Night.  The Fates in Greek Mythology are the daughters of Nyx (Goddess of Night), so the dark moon is a perfect time to call upon them to help you see things more clearly.  Ask them to assist you in your tarot readings, rune readings, or to show you answers or clues in your dreams during this dark night.  Here in this blog post I have included some information on The Fates, along with a beautiful ritual for honoring them.

The following information is from the book, "Moon Magick" by D.J. Conway and you may find it helpful in connecting with the Fates, The Norns, or The Wyrd Sisters before you try to attempt any ritual invoking them. 

THE FATES & THE NORNS-

The Greek Fates and Nordic Norns are very similar. It may be that these Goddesses all came from pre-Aryan cultures in the Far East, before these cultural groups migrated to their respective areas to settle. Although there is no record of sacrifices to The Norns, the Nordic clans held them in awe and high regard. In Greece and Rome, the Fates were taken very seriously. They were given sacrifices of honey and flowers. Well into Medieval times three rings were used in special rituals to invoke the Fates. The three gunas, or colored threads (white, red, and black), of India were said to run through every life as ordained by the Fates. Ovid, Theocritus, and others wrote of the same colored life-threads in Greek literature.

 * The Fates

The Greek Fates ("portions, shares") were also called the Moerae or Moirai and became known as the Parcae during the Middle Ages. These three serious daughter of Nyx (Night), were Clotho, Lachesis, and Atropos. Clotho spun the life-thread, Lachesis measured it, assigned the destiny, and added a portion of luck. Brooding Atropos with her shears cuts the thread at any time without warning. Not even Zeus would go against a decree by the Fates. The Goddess Nemesis was the only one who could influence Atropos to let the thread spin into a longer length. They were often accompanied by the Keres (Dogs of Hades) who were three beings with sharp teeth and robed in red. Although this trio was feared, the beings were also invoked at weddings for a happy union.

* The Norns

In many aspects, the Nordic Norns were quite similar. This trio of fate Goddesses live at the Well of Urd near one of the roots of the World Tree Yggdrasil. They are Urd (The Past), Verthandi or Verdandi (the Present), and Skuld (the Future).   The Norn Urd (Fate) was defined as "that which is becoming"; Verthandi (Necessity) as "That which is"; Skuld (Being) as "That which should become".  Predestination and predetermination were were unknown to the Norse.  They believed that what each person did influenced his/her future. 

The Norns were almost as important as the Aesir themselves.  In fact, these Goddesses were said to weave the destinies of men, gods, giants, dwarfs, and every other living being.  Each day the Norse Gods held their counsil at this Well in the presence of the Norns.  The fact that the water from the Well of Urd turned everything white may tie these deities to the three phases of the Moon. Certain records also speak of the helpers of the Norns, who were the Disir; in some writings these were called elves. The Hamingjes were like guardian angels to the humans. There were elf-maids who cared for unborn babies. The decrees of Urd were carried out by the Giptes. Other Disir oversaw certain families or clans. There were even supernatural women , not Valkyries, who brought the souls of the dead to Hel's realm. 

It is rare for a person to know exactly where their future is going, including all the sidetracks that invariably go on.  It is difficult to even get a clear glimpse of the broader picture.  Learning to work with the Norns and The Fates and Listen to their advice is important to avoid major pitfalls.  If they point out coming problems, and we manage to change our direction to avoid them, we have taken responsibility in the molding of our future.  If the problems revealed by the Norns seem to stay in our path regardless of our efforts, then we must work through them, learning the necessary lessons.

 * The English knew of the Norns by the name of the Weird Sisters. The Anglo-Saxons called them Wyrd; in Old High German Wurd. These Wyrd Sisters are quite likely descendants of the Greek Moerae or Fates.

RITUAL:

 This is from the book "Moon Magick" by D.J. Conway. It is suggested for the Dark Moon that falls in December. I am not copying word for word except for the ritual and the info on the fates... I have done this ritual before and have added my own notes and thoughts.

* You will need; * 3 long cords (thick string or ribbon) - one white, one black, and one red
Your altar set up however you want for the Winter season and whatever candles or incense you find fitting.
You may choose to have three candles, one of red, one of black, and one of red, also, to represent the three sisters (The Fates/The Norns) or three candles of any color you wish... however you want to set it up is fine.

 * The Ritual;

 Call upon The Fates. You can call upon the Greek Fates (Clotho, Lachesis, and Atropos) or the Nordic Norns (Urd, Verthandi, and Skuld), or call on them as The Wyrd Sisters as they are known in English traditions.

* Take the three cords and braid them together. If you wish, make this long enough to be tied around your waist and in the future use the braided cord as part of your ritual garment, (or something to be kept on your altar at all times) As you braid, repeat this chant; *

 "Over, under, threads of Fate.

As in my life, so in all things.

Weaving the pattern, soon or late,

I see the result that action brings."

 (You may also choose to chant the names of the Fates between each repetition of the above chant.) When you finish braiding the cord, knot both ends and kiss the braid. Wrap it around your waist or drape it over your shoulders (or wrap it around your wrists and lift your hands upward) Visualize the Fates of Norns before you, lift your hands to them and chant;

"A new year dawns, the threads weave on,

to ultimately reveal my destiny.

Oh Fates of Life, I ask your aid

To clear my path and set me free.

Let old things die and blow away.

Let new come in to prosper me.

Oh Fates of Life I ask your aid,

To clear my life and set me free."

Sleep with the braided cords under your pillow and pay attention to your dreams.  And be prepared to do whatever is necessary and proper to straighten out your life and make your path smoother.

You may also choose to use the braid to wrap around your deck of tarot cards, or to wear around your wrist, shoulders, or waist whenever you do divination of any form, to help you connect with The Fates or The Norns during future readings.